Paul Rudd’s hippie character Ned could shame Willie Nelson fans into disowning their musical hero. Ned’s dog shares the famed country singer’s name. This factoid becomes a crucial element in sewing up a comedy that inspires no more than three chuckle-inducing gags.
Upstate New York farmer Ned makes the mistake of selling weed to a uniformed cop at a farmer’s market. Ned is trusting of others to a fault. Whether he’s autistic, retarded, or just willfully naive isn’t directly addressed, but something is definitely wrong.
Ned’s early release from prison on good-behavior sends him into the unwelcoming arms of his three urban-dwelling sisters after Ned discovers his former farm life has been co-opted by another guy.
A couch-surfing stint with sibling Liz (Emily Mortimer) and her husband Dylan (Steve Coogan) gives Ned the opportunity to infect their son’s behavior and expedite the couple’s marriage troubles. Ned goes on to trample through sister Miranda’s (Elizabeth Banks) debut writing assignment for Vanity Fair.
Last on the list is bi-sexual Natalie (Zooey Deschanel) whose future prospects with her live-in lesbian lover (Rashida Jones) takes a left turn at Ned’s unintentional influence. Ned’s dysfunctional family are all a bunch of idiots. To view the story from Ned’s perspective as the film’s would-be protagonist is to accept defeat. There isn’t much that’s funny about that.
Rated PG-13. 90 mins.
